Common Facts
by Ikuni Hattori
Summary: There were many facts that Hermione knew, but two things truly puzzled the brains of the Golden trio: Who her birth parents were and why she was given up.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I've noticed that I've leaned towards reading certain types of fics lately, and I've surprisingly not seen as much as I would like. So this is what happened! :D So give it a read, and hopefully a review. Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I OWN NOTHING OF THE HARRY POTTER FRANCHISE. I TAKE CREDIT FOR ONLY MY STORY IDEA.

* * *

There were many facts that Hermione knew: why the Great Hall at Hogwarts had a bespelled ceiling; how to make a Polyjuice Potion last hours longer; how to enchant muggle electronics so magic could be used safely around them. But two things truly puzzled the brains of the Golden trio:

Who her birth parents were and why she was given up.

When obliviating her parents—her adoptive parents—she had to rifle through their memories in order to fully erase herself from them. In neither of their minds did she find her birth, nor the first two years of her life. It was only a few months after her second birthday, around Christmas time, did she finally come into their lives. The brunette didn't know the face of the person who had dropped her off, but knew the woman wasn't her mother. Hermione knew it in her gut. A relative perhaps? Then why wouldn't she take her in instead of giving her to someone else? In her mind, there was no justification for it, and so dismissed the idea that the woman, a witch based on her attire, had been related to her.

The problem gnawed at her their entire Horcrux hunt, making her irritable and angry. When she wore the locket, it only whispered evil things to her. What if her parents were pureblood? That would show Malfoy and all of those bigots that they had been wrong about her the entire time. But what if her parents were Death Eaters? They could be dead, and then her search would be over. . .or they could be imprisoned. . .

The most terrifying revelation came when they had been snatched and brought to Malfoy Manor. The first time she saw Bellatrix LeStrange—had the other woman's hands on her—there was a spark of connection between the two, their magic dancing with one another in recognition. It startled her enough that the lioness had let her defenses down. Bellatrix obviously felt the same thing she did, but it didn't deter the older woman from torturing her.

Hermione was grateful she made it out alive.

But when she had time to sit and think, she was able to analyze exactly what that connection was. Sitting in Shell Cottage, she had time to rifle through the books Fluer had there while waiting for Harry to be emotionally ready to move on. The books Fluer had were on familial bonds, and what she read had terrified her. It talked about parental/children bonds, the child feeling safe when the parent was near due to familiar magical signatures, and even talked about the magicks that can be summoned up in a time of great duress for the family.

When Ron had been gone during the Hunt, Harry and her had gotten much closer, so she felt no hesitation in finally talking to him about her fears. His advice to her was to not think about it. That they had more pressing things on their plates at the moment. But if it worried her that much, Harry knew the goblins had access to everyone's lineage. She could always contact them. When she had brought up her worry of the Death Eaters patrolling Diagon Alley catching her, Harry's simple answer was: "Why not ask the Goblins?"

That night, Hermione did as Harry suggested, writing as politely as she could, since Griphook was not there to direct her, having left days earlier. She aimed to open a dialogue between her and Gringotts, and could only hope for a favorable response. Almost as soon as the owl set off with her letter, Ron and Harry entered her room. It was time to plan.

* * *

Polyjuice Potion. Hermione thought hard about whether she remembered the whole recipe or not.

It wasn't as if they still had _Moste Potente Potions_ nor access to it. With her near photographic memory, she was sure she wouldn't forget anything. "It will take a month to brew," she reminded them. The boys had no problems with the time scale.

Breaking into Gringotts was vastly different than breaking into the Slytherin common room. It shamed her to seek help from the goblins they would then steal from later. But they needed the Horcrux in the vault of Bellatrix LeStrange. The hair she found on herself was long and black, undoubtedly one of Bellatrix's. She hadn't touched the older witch's wand since it was thrown in her beaded bag. If she had to tell the truth, Hermione was terrified, her Gryffindor courage failing her. The fleeting moment of warmth she felt while holding a Death Eater's wand terrified her. It was the same warmth she felt when she had found her own that first day in Ollivander's all those years ago. She wanted answers, but Hermione wasn't sure if she could handle the truth.

The following fortnight saw exchanges between her and the goblins, and a date the day before their planned heist was decided upon for her to meet with the Ancestry and Lineage manager to help her learn who her parents were. As soon as she knew the arangements, Hermione pulled Harry aside.

"Will you come with me to Gringotts?" Without hesitation, he nodded and enveloped her in a hug.

"Hermione, you have nothing to worry about. No matter what happens, I will always be your friend. Knowing your real parents won't change who you are. You will always be Hermione to me." Harry's words allayed her fears. She snuggled in his embrace, but they had to part when they heard footsteps on the stairs.

The door opened and Ron stepped in. "Ron, good. You're here. The Polyjuice Potion will be ready soon. But we're going to need samples from the people you two are changing into."

"Where are we going to get those?" the redhead asked.

"Harry and I need to go to Diagon Alley in a few days, and will be testing out some glamour spells I have been working on. We want you to come with to help pick out your person," Hermione said outright.

"Eh, won't that be dangerous?" Ron asked. "I don't want to get snatched again."

"The glamour charms I will be using will be taking features from all of the Pureblood families, so if someone looks for to long, we will look familiar, but not out of place." she explained, trying to allay her own fears by trying to convince Ron.

"I still don't like this idea," came the redhead's response. There was silence as Hermione thought.

"Did you want to stay behind and look after the potion? It has to be stirred three times counterclockwise at exactly 11am, and three times counterclockwise at exactly 2pm."

"I think I can handle that," Ron replied, nodding. "But you two need to stay safe. I don't want to hear anything about you guys getting captured, alright? I don't think I'm cut out for saving people," he laughed nervously.

* * *

The days before her meeting went quickly, and before Hermione knew it, she was applying glamour charms to herself and to Harry. Should anyone stop them, their cover story was of a Purebred couple from France, here for their honeymoon. However, they couldn't get out before the country was locked down, and have had no way to get home. Hermione had opted for black hair with gentle curls with high cheekbones and blue eyes, where Harry kept his hair black, only it was shorter than he was used to. His face was completely changed, his scar gone but his features were modeled after a cross between Draco and Sirius, with a splash of her own father. Their clothes were transfigured into finer material robes, Hermione's made of blue silk like the Beauxbatons school uniforms, and Harry's modeled after a mixture of Lucius' outfit and of a French wizards robes from a pamphlet she had looked at years ago, and she could easily tell Harry felt uncomfortable in it.

"Are you ready, _Duc de Noir_?" Hermione asked with a smile, taking his hand and squeezing it for comfort.

"As ready as I'll ever be, _Duchesse de Noir_ ," he replied with a grin, and as they waved to Ron a farewell and a promise that they would be back, Hermione apparated them into Diagon Alley.

Upon appearing on the apparition point in Diagon Alley, several wands were trained on them. Losing her nerve, Hermione hid her face in Harry's chest. "Identify yourselves!" came the command, and Harry replied as he pried Hermione off of him.

"I am _Duc de Noir_ ," he said in the French accent Hermione and Fleur had coached him in the past few weeks. "Zis is my wife, ze _Duchasse de Noir_." Upon her introduction, Hermione curtsied and offered a small, " _Bonjour_."

"State your business," came the jab of the center wizard in the group of three, his companions looking in their book of names.

"We are on our 'oneymoon," Harry replied again. The two could almost feel the suspicion pouring off of these Death Eater guards. "We 'ave been trapped 'ere, unable to return 'ome due to ze 'igher security measures."

"What's wrong with her? Why does she not speak?" came the next question as the center man jabbed his wand at Hermione. With a disgusted look on her face, she evaded his wand and stepped behind Harry, her lips sealed shut. They had agreed he would do the talking. . .for now.

"We are _pur sang_ , _monsieur._ My bride is not so ill-mannered as to speak where she should be silent." Harry felt, in his bones, that what he just said went against everything he believed in, but Hermione had drilled Pureblood politics and customs into his head in order to make their cover believable.

"You are not on our lists," one of the sentries checking the book said, and Harry adopted a disgusted look on his face.

"And we are of a different nation zan zat of ze land we are currently in."

"Why did you come here today?" came the insistent badgering. They just would not give up!

"We 'ave business in Gringotts, and must be going!" Harry snapped back, and the leader's eyes narrowed at his response. His gaze suddenly shot to the so far silent Hermione.

"Make her speak."

"My bride is not 'ere for your amusement," Harry growled, his magic reacting to his temper, making all the men surrounding them take a few steps back.

". . .is she able to speak?" the leader commented, glee filling his eyes, believing he must have caught someone in disguise. Harry and Hermione didn't crack under pressure, however. While scowling, Harry turned to whisper in Hermione's ear.

"What do we do?" he asked, keeping the scowl on his face. Hermione turned to whisper back, her breath tickling his ear.

"Trust me." Turning to face their accusers, Harry and Hermione stood shoulder to shoulder. Hermione began to rattle something off in fluent french, spouting titles and dropping names like it was nobody's business.

"What is she doing?" the leader exclaimed angrily. "Speak English!"

"Unfortunately, she does not know English. My, you Englishmen are so demanding. Never satisfied, are you? We were supposed to work on her English while we were 'ere, 'owever zis country has been most discourteous to us. Now," Harry said, taking Hermione's elbow, "we must be off. If you made us late, zere will be 'ell to pay!" And with that, he breezed past the three stunned wizards, Hermione in tow.

* * *

So, what do you all think? :D Leave a review and lemme know! I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts. :)

French:

 _pur sang_ \- pureblooded

 _duc/duchesse_ \- duke/duchess, VERY loosely translates to Lord and Lady; meant here as the Duke and Duchess of the Black (family/providence/whatever)

I am in no way formally trained in French, so if those of you who are find offense in my use of it, please let me know how I can make it better.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Thanks so much for the love for the first chapter! :D

Thank you also to shayharring, bhdragons, EternalVeritie, desireejones99, Le Cavalier Blanc, and AliceEnchanted for reviewing. Your replies are waiting in your inbox. :)

I would also like to thank 10 people who favorited and the 22 people who followed the story! :D You guys make my heart go doki doki when I see my email. :)

Here's the second chapter! Granted, it's a little bit shorter than the last chapter, however there will be some things in here that may raise more questions. But all in due time, my dears, all in due time.

Give it a read, leave a review, and please enjoy! I own nothing of the Harry Potter universe and take no claim on it.

* * *

Making it to Gringotts with no further delay, the two embraced in the bank lobby to try to calm each other down. After about a minute, they separated, only to find a goblin had approached them and waited to catch their attentions.

"Lord and Lady Noir, we have been expecting you." As agreed upon in their letters, the goblin greeted them with their false personas to ensure their cover stayed intact in case anyone was following them. Without another word, the goblin turned and headed towards a side room, enchanted for privacy. The two followed him, and as soon as the door shut, the tension flowed out of them.

A single goblin stepped forward from the trio waiting in front of the desk and introduced himself. "I am Sharpclaw, Head of Lineage and Ancestry. This," he said, indicating his fellow on his left, "is Irontusk, Head of Accounts, and," pointing to a goblin familiar to them both, who stood to Sharpclaw's right, "Griphook, manager of the Potter accounts and friend to your cause. You can remove your glamours. You are safe here."

After a moment, Hermione pulled out her wand and dispelled their glamours. Once her wand was stashed away safely, Harry stepped forward and bowed, Hermione following suit with a curtsy of her own. "Thank you for meeting with us," the brunette started with.

"Of course. When you first spoke with us, we were curious, especially depending on which line you indeed hail from, we could trump someone up on line theft charges," Sharpclaw started out with a toothy grin. Ignoring her confused look, he continued on. "If it is the truth you seek, we can provide it." Hermione returned the smile.

"My thanks to you and your brethren for meeting with us and for your assistance. My need for the truth is great."

"Then we shall start the ritual immediately," he commented before nodding to the goblin who had met them in the lobby. Said goblin left and came back with a cart, on which what looked like a ceremonial dagger, a quill, and parchment. "Follow me," Sharpclaw said, and he led the two into another room behind his desk, Griphook, Irontusk, and the unnamed courier goblin bringing up the rear. The room itself was dark and plain, a single flat stone chunk in the direct center of the room. As they neared it, Harry and Hermione noticed the basin in the center of the stone chunk. The door to the office shut and the room was cast into darkness momentarily before a soft white glow came from the stone itself. The nameless goblin poured a potion into the basin and it shone blue upon the stone. Gripping the dagger, Sharpclaw approached Hermione.

"When I open your hand, have all of the blood flow into the basin. The wound shall close on its own, so do not waste a drop. I shall do the rest." Upon the witch nodding, Sharpclaw held out his hand. Standing next to the stone, Hermione offered her hand, palm up, to the goblin. With one sharp slash, he held her hand palm upward for a moment, letting the blood pool a little bit.

Sharpclaw chanted something in Gobbledegook, prompting Hermione to make a mental note to herself to learn some new languages when this war was over. The sharp pain in her hand was increasing, but it was nothing to the curses tested on her by Bellatrix. When she was prompted, Hermione moved her hand to hover over the basin and upturned it, letting the blood fall. As soon as it hit the potion, it let off a crimson light. "We wait for the blood to stop, and then we can reveal your past." With another nod, Hermione waited patiently. Only after she felt a slight cooling sensation on her palm did she pull her hand back to find the cut and the blood gone. The potion then turned gold and Sharpclaw dropped the quill into the potion, tip first. With a wave of his hand, the quill floated up and gently touched itself to the seemingly spelled parchment, beginning to write, its writings appearing on the walls around them.

Within seconds, the top of her tree began, with the oldest lines that seemed to matter. The tree reached well past the Founders Era, and continued to the Wilde Aeges of Magick, as Sharpclaw explained to her. These absolute first names meant nothing to Harry and Hermione, having no idea what impact these lines could have on wizarding Britain today.

The line of Ravenclaw caught Hermione's eye, and she found Rowena and Helena a generation or so before Morgan le Fay, yet on different lines on the tree. As the witch spent several minutes marveling at this connection, Harry's eyes were following the still developing tree. Inhaling sharply, he tugged on Hermione's sleeve to catch her attention.

"Mia," he whispered, his eyes locked to the next wall over. Hermione turned at the use of a nickname and froze at the family name splayed against the wall.

"Please, no," Hermione whispered as her hand sought out Harry's. At long last, the growth of the tree slowed down until it reached the Black sisters. With bated breath, the lines stopped at the children of Andromeda and Narcissa, neither of which had Hermione's name among them. Turning her attention to the last name of the trio, the brunette had her suspicions confirmed, as the line connected to her name led to the last Black sister and her husband: Bellatrix and Rodolphus LeStrange.

For once in her life, her mind was unresponsive, her senses numb, as the world continued on around her.

"Mia?" She blinked as she focused on Harry, his gaze concerned and intent on her. "Irontusk has gone to get documentation to get you keyed into your family vaults and to activate your trust vault. For your 'allowance'." Her mind beginning to whirl, she looked at Harry so suddenly, as if finally seeing him, and he jumped at the intensity in her gaze.

"Harry," she whispered as he helped her to her feet. She didn't remember when she had fallen to her knees. "We need to tour my vaults." The urgency in her voice scared him, but he nodded. These turn of events rendered all of their plans for tomorrow useless. They wouldn't have to break into Gringotts if they'd be able to walk right into Bellatrix's vault and take the Horcrux. Both were immediately put on guard. Anything this easy was sure to have something horrible happen not too long afterwards. Their luck wasn't this good.

The next few minutes passed by quickly, and Irontusk came back with several documents needed to gain her access to her new family vaults.

"You also have claim to the Ravenclaw and le Fay vaults. For your trust vault, we can take the money from one, two, or all three vaults that you have access to. If you take any from the LeStrange vault, I warn you, we are required to notify the vault holders, Lord and Lady LeStrange, of any withdrawals or alterations. Do you have a pref-"

"For right now, can it just be filled from the Ravenclaw and le Fay vaults? I wish to reunite with my parents," the word was hard to say for her. She didn't really wish to think of _them_ as her real parents, "on my own without dragging the goblins and their nation into it. They have enough keeping them busy, we need not add more work with my family problems," she explained as graciously as she could, hoping she didn't offend him. Irontusk nodded and barked out a laugh.

"Thank you for your consideration for our time," he replied before beginning the paperwork, his pen quick on the parchment. As he was busy with this, Hermione turned to Sharpclaw and gave a curtsey.

"Thank you so much for your help. You time and assistance is invaluable." Sharpclaw returned with a bow of his own before continuing to clean up the remnants of the ritual.

"You are very most welcome, Ms. LeStrange," he replied. "As stated in our letters, we shall withdraw this fee from one of your vaults."

"May I request it be taken from my trust vault?" Another nod and he shuffled out of the room, his assistant in tow, leaving Irontusk and Griphook behind with the two teens.

"I need your signatures here, Ms. LeStrange, before we can go visit your vaults," the goblin called over to them. Harry took her hand and squeezed, a reassuring smile on his face. Having to remind herself about signing her new name-Hermione didn't think she'd ever get used to that- she placed her new signature on the documents no less than five times, the back of her hand stinging slightly from the Blood Quill. As soon as the last slot was signed, Irontusk instructed her how to clean the quill, and never asked for it back. When the witch tried to give it to him, he shook his head at her. "It is yours now. Use only that quill to sign important documents. All others would be found insignificant." And then, the moment she was waiting for. "Let's go see your vaults."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

* * *

As Irontusk began to lead her away, Griphook pulled Harry aside. "Mr. Potter, it is to my knowledge that you would benefit from a lineage test as well. I would suggest you take one within the fortnight, if not within the week," he urged. Harry only had one question.

"Why?"

"As Manager of the Potter accounts, it is greatly encouraged to get all of your affairs together. Your father would have had it not been for—"

"Harry!" Hermione called out, right as she was hovering at the edge of a private tunnel to the vault carts. "Are you coming?" She looked shaken still, her posture not at all like the Hermione he knew.

Turning back to Griphook, Harry muttered, "Set a date within the next two weeks and send word to me. I will come." Nodding in response, Griphook gave the wizard an unsettling toothy smile.

"It will be done. Go to her, Mr. Potter. After what's happened to her, she will need all the comfort she can get."

"Thank you, Griphook, for all of your help and your friendship," Harry said before bowing again. He then moved off to rejoin Hermione, who clung to him when he was close enough.

"Let's go tour your vaults, Miss LeStrange," Irontusk commented. "The manager of the LeStrange vaults, as well as the manager of the Olde and Ancient vaults will be joining us at your first vault. They are very eager to meet the newest heiress and scion of the Ravenclaw and le Fay accounts."

* * *

"If Draco Malfoy and Nymphadora Tonks are my cousins, wouldn't they have claim over these vaults as well?" Hermione asked curiously during their cart ride.

"The Ravenclaw and le Fay lines are maternal—they cannot be passed down to the Malfoy boy. And with your other cousin, her mother had been cast out of the Black family, thus illegitimizing her inheritance, as far as I know. You will need to ask more information of the manager of the accounts you have questions about," Irontusk replied as they went along a particularly sharp corner. Hermione clung to Harry, her nerves unsettled by everything that's happened today so far. No words passed between the two, but Harry knew she needed comfort, and merely kissed Hermione's hair before just holding her, bracing himself against the sides of the cart so they wouldn't jostle around too much on the roller coaster ride.

They reached the LeStrange main vault and found two goblins waiting for them. Upon disembarking the cart, Irontusk introduced the two newcomers to the party. "The manager of the LeStrange accounts, Thornroot, and the manager of the Olde and Anceint vaults, Rag'dar." The first goblin, and the younger looking of the two, looked particularly sour, especially upon seeing the newest heir to his accounts. Thornroot nodded to her, despite the look of disgust on his face. Hermione gave a small curtsy that made him momentarily falter before sneering at her. Rag'dar, however, smiled as warmly as a goblin could, bowing to Hermione as she stepped forward. He looked infinitely older than any other goblin she had encountered before, and as Hermione offered a curtsy to him, she heard him bark out a laugh.

"I already like you, daughter of Rowena and Morgana," he said, grinning toothily, sending a chill down her spine.

"Let's get this over with," Thornroot complained, and he opened up the LeStrange vault. Inside were coins and gold piled nearly to the ceiling. Gaping at the fact that this was all hers— _and her parents'—_ Hermione stepped inside, Harry at her side.

"Am I able to withdraw anything from the LeStrange vault? Or would that also need to alert my parents to the transaction?" Hermione asked, unsettled by how she was able to call two Death Eaters her parents and it seem natural coming from her mouth.

"You are correct, Miss LeStrange. Any transactions on paper or in person are recorded and reflected in the monthly statements sent to the account holder. Once you reactivate the vaults of Ravenclaw and le Fay, you will have these same statements sent to you via owl post, unless you have a preferred alternative," the Goblin leading them replied as he let the two see the immense wealth that Hermione was inheriting. The witch shot Harry an alarmed look, worried that even if they found the horcrux, they wouldn't be able to do anything about it.

Wincing as Thornroot led them to the back so they could see the things on the shelves, Harry turned to Irontusk and asked, "Is there a chance there could be a horcrux in any of the vaults?" He frowned and rubbed his scar as if to emphasize his point. Hermione silently thanked Harry for his quick thinking, and then watched in amazement as all of the goblins froze before nearly turning in unison to look towards the only two humans in the vault.

"What did you just say?" Thornroot asked in a growl, making them share a wary look.

"I asked about horcruxes. I can feel one in here," Harry replied hesitantly, keeping his eyes on the goblins that just seemed like they became a threat. At least all except Rag'dar. His more jovial demeanor didn't seem to change much.

"Mister Potter, how do you know about such pieces of filth?" Irontusk asked as Thornroot tried to, as far as Hermione could tell, search out where the horcrux could be.

"Professor Dumbledor told me that Vol—er, He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named made several of them, but he doesn't know how many were made. We have already taken care of three of them, but we have no clue where the others are, but. . ." Harry paused, grabbing Hermione's hand to ground himself. "For some reason, my scar hurt when it was near the other three Horcruxes we have taken care of, and it just hurt again when we were back by this wall." He pointed to the back wall they had stopped at and the two humans marveled at how quickly two out of the three goblins had swiveled their heads, it was a surprise they didn't pop their heads off. As Thornroot perused the wall for any object that might seem like it have Dark Taint, Irontusk pulled Harry and Hermione off to the side. Rag'dar was merely amused by all of these proceedings, and stood to the side, watching as the younger goblins worked themselves into a frenzy.

"You have had this scar all your life, correct Mister Potter?" Irontusk asked, his gaze intense. Harry shook his head.

"No, just after Vol—He attacked my family." Irontusk hummed in thought, before turning to Thornroot. The LeStrange account manager was muttering angrily to himself.

"Find it yet?" Rag'dar called out gleefully.

"Not yet! But it's here! The sensor says so," Thornroot exclaimed. "It's such an insult to the Goblin Nation to have such pieces of filth in any of our vaults!" He scanned the wall with an orb he must have pulled from the pouch on his belt, a faint glow coming from it. When he passed it over a particular golden goblet, the orb shone brightly, and Thornroot grinned wildly. "I believe our tour is over," he said, and Rag'dar was the one to help usher Harry and Hermione out of the vault.

"What will happen to the cup?" Hermione couldn't help but ask over her shoulder as she and Harry were ushered into the cart.

"The mages will quarantine the cup, a ritual be done to cleanse the object, and the object either put back into the vault it was found in or put into the vault of the proper owner," Rag'dar answered easily enough, entering the cart himself and activating a switch to send them to their next destination. "Oh, and your parents will be heavily fined for having a Dark Object of Forbidden Magicks in their vault." There was a small sense of glee in the pit of Hermione's stomach. Whether it was from the news she just heard or the drop that just sent their cart plummeting down 20 feet, she wasn't sure. All she was sure about was the solid feeling of Harry's hand in hers, as they hurtled to her inheritance.

* * *

A/N: Hey guys! I'm back with another chapter of Common Facts! ^.^ My last exam is tonight so I will have a lot more time to work on stories. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter! I'm going to try sticking to updating every Wednesday, so expect weekly updates :) Don't forget to follow, favorite, and/or leave a review!

Until next time, My Lovelies!


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